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November 6, 2016

The Hejnar Photo family of Manfrotto® conversion clamps is richer by one new member. A few days ago a quite innovative Arca-Swiss® compatible Quick Release clamp was released, intended for the small ball head that comes as a kit with the compact Manfrotto® BeFree tripod.

The Hejnar clamp innovation lies in its asymmetrical jaws, obviously meant to follow the special shape of the RC-2 quick release, which it replaces, in order to fit between the reverse folding legs of the small traveller tripod.

The Clamp

Manufacturer Specification:

Model:

BEFREE-CLAMP

Jaw Length:

53.3 mm (2.1")

Total Height:

21.0 mm (0.83")

Safety Stop Relief Grooves:

Two 2.6mm deep

Design:

Tongue-in-pocket *

Weight:

64 gr (2.2 oz)

Material:

6061-T6 Aluminium, Black hard coat anodized

Hardware:

Stainless Steel

Made in:

U.S.A.

*Protects internal parts from dust and grit. It does prevent the tendency of the moving jaw to hinge backward during clamping, It keeps the jaws aligned with the geometry of the plate and eliminating unwanted bending forces on the threaded stud.

Nonetheless, the clamp design is quite unusual in shape with a larger front jaw smoothly curved into a half size rear (moving) jaw. The front side and all edges are curved to avoid damage of tripod leg parts coming in contact with it.

Hejnar PHOTO 2.1" BeFree Clamp innovative yet unusual design.

The bottom side shows the deep groove made to eliminate excess material, but most prominent is the special anti-twist bosses which abide to the Manfrotto® ball head standards. As usual Manfrotto® sets its own proprietary anti-twist system on their ball head stems, which is actually the purpose of this clamp besides the shape.

Hejnar PHOTO 2.1" BeFree Clamp bottom details and anti-twist bosses.

The scales here are marked in 1 mm intervals with longer lines every 5 mm and center Φ marks. The rear (moving jaw) and the short knurled black knob are closer to the Hejnar PHOTO F60 1" Quick Release clamp design and size.
Anyway the 2.6 mm deep safety stop screw grooves are present getting very close to the mounting screw hole, so as to allow for small plates with safety screw to be able to move within the limits of the QR clamp.

Hejnar PHOTO 2.1" BeFree Quick Release Clamp design details.

Mounting on the Tripod
Conversion on the other hand is very easy. Just by removing the existing RC system held by one 1/4"-20 hex socket screw and using the same screw to mount the new clamp, you have an Arca-Swiss® compatible system.

Hejnar PHOTO 2.1" Conversion Clamp on the compact BeFree ball head

The elliptically shaped sides of the clamp match perfectly with the leg clips when the tripod legs are folded back fully by 180° thus maintaining its very compact form.

Hejnar PHOTO 2.1" Conversion Clamp on BeFree tripod enclosed between the folded back legs by 180°